Coachella 2011: Hello, I will be your constant companion for the next 72 hours
Hello, friend. I am your security bracelet for Coachella. You may know my distant relative, HAL 9000. Do not be alarmed at my presence.
For the next 72 hours, I will be attached to your wrist, through rock 'n' roll shows, showers that wash off the desert dust and sunscreen (only to return tomorrow), pool party rendezvous, an ill-advised tangle with the CoolHaus ice-cream truck, sleeping (if you get to partake in such a thing) and anything else you do while in Indio. (And don't worry, I don't judge... nor do I tweet or blog or talk to your mother, much.) Stare into my hypnotizing blue eye...
....yesssssss. I know things about you: That you were born in California. That you enjoy the contoured blues of the Black Keys. That you once saw a cat with six-fingered paws. Imagine that!
OK, I don't know all that. I made it all up. All I know is that you bought a ticket for Coachella 2011, and my microchip will help you get into the festival. When you swipe me against a gate at the entrance, I allow entry into Coachella's palatial entertainments, its bounty of rock treasures, people-watching (whoa, a guy in blue face makeup and a yellow cape! A girl in furry knee-high boots! Six beautiful blonds riding in on tricycles!), tempting food trucks, chill-out tents, fans blowing sweet cold mist, and architectural contraptions that pop and blink and whirl.
Welcome, my friend. Enjoy the desert magic, and protect me well.
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-- Margaret Wappler
Photo: Margaret Wappler's wrist and Coachella security bracelet. Credit: Margaret Wappler / Los Angeles Times
Setting aside the great bands the festival has made access nearly impossible this year. You have to walk several miles to get into the venue and then the same distance to leave - which at 2:00 pm could prove dangerous.
The decision to block foot traffic on Avenue 50 and 51 also discriminates against the less than physically fit and the handicapped who in the past could be dropped off at the door step.
This access issue is the worst I've seen at any festival this year.
Posted by: Kitty Walker | April 16, 2011 at 02:16 PM